Mario and Luigi. These two famous plumbers from the Mushroom Kingdom finally made their RPG debut as a duo - especially Luigi, who first appears as a playable character in this game - in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, otherwise known as simply Mario and Luigi RPG in Japan. It takes mechanics made in Super Mario RPG, and refined them into a smooth RPG experience set in a new locale known as the Beanbean kingdom. And it is one of the greatest RPGs you could find on a GBA.


Graphics:
The graphics of Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga - which I'll shorten to just Superstar Saga for now - are crisp, vibrant and amazing. And the animations of all the characters, including Mario and Luigi themselves, are flawless. That even includes the hidden Easter Egg where poor Luigi get abused by Mario in the crotch in order to get more money, which never fails to not put a smile on my face.


Music:
The music for Superstar Saga is a bit catchy. From the main overworked theme of the Beanbean Outskirts, to the basic battle music, from People's theme to the themes which play during the final boss, each song fits the tone of the area which they take place in.


Addictiveness and Depth:
As Superstar Saga is an RPG, it normally is something which once you've completed, you want to leave. But there are many things which you can do, from getting all of the coffee blends and therefore all the E. Gadd accessories, to playing the guessing games of the Thwomps, to finding the ten Beanstones, as just a few of the optional side activities you can do in the game. Plus, because you can manually dodge in this game and avoid attacks completely, that offers a whole set of possibilities for self-set challenges, including not healing at all during the final boss fight - which means taking them on with only 1HP.


Story/Synopsis:
For once, it's not Bowser kidnapping Peach like he normally does - instead, the plot kicks off with the main antagonists of the game, Cackletta and her loyal minion, Fawful, stealing the voice of Princess Peach and leaving an... Explosive vocabulary in its place. This leads to Bowser joining up with Mario, at least for the time being, to rescue her voice. Luigi intended to stay behind, but his status as a bit of a butt monkey shows up very early on, as Bowser assumed that he wants to join his baddies, when in fact all he wanted to do is send Mario off - leading to where Luigi tries to sneak away only to be caught by Bowser's new ship.
As the plot progresses, things happen which seems to hinder the brother's progress. First, Fawful shows up and wrecks Bowser's new airship, causing the duo to land in Stardust Fields (on the Mushroom Kingdom side of the boarder) and for Bowser to end up stuck in a cannon which Tolstar tries to use to his advantage. The latter is beaten, and Bowser is fired off to who knows where. Then, Mario and Luigi were almost accused for the disappearance of the Prince of Beanbean Kingdom, Prince Peasley - but after some shenanigans including Fawful stopping them from heading towards Beanbean Castle and a climb up Hoohoo Mountain, they save the Prince from his curse, leading to them getting hammers.
The plot progresses as Mario and Luigi are tricked into doing plumbing in order for Cackletta to get the Beanstar from the security system, but despite delays trying to save Queen Bean, including an encounter with the thief Popple, and his new sidekick, Rookie - who looks a lot like Bowser - the duo makes it to Woohoo University just as Cackletta tried to use Peach's voice to wake up the Beanstar.

Cackletta is then defeated by the brothers, but Fawful recovers her essence before the Prince knocks him out of the building. And then after another fight with Popple and Rookie, things happen leading to the Beanstar splitting into four, and Bowser regaining his memories.
After learning the third technique which both brothers can use in Oho Oasis, the brothers finally meet Peasley again, who informs them that Peach is going to arrive soon. So they clear the runway, so that the Road Express land, and...


The overall plot is solid, and makes a nice change from the usual pace of Bowser kidnapping Peach. I could talk all day about the plot, but this is a review, not a plot synopsis, so I better get on with it.


Final Verdict:
Mario and Luigi, Superstar Saga is a great introduction to the Mario and Luigi franchise, which has never gone wrong since it started off with this game. Once you get the timing for dodging down, the game becomes a lot more easier, but while still posing a good challenge. The only thing which makes it lose points is that the Koopalings suddenly appear as mini bosses in Bowser's Castle, with almost no warning. But still, a solid 9.9/10 for Superstar Saga

You did a great job, dude! This review was really well done. You should really make more! Although you don't exactly need to sum up the story of the game in your review. You can talk about it, or about what you thought of it. But it doesn't need to have an exact synopsis of it. You did amazing though!

Well, I didn't explain everything which happens, so there's still things which others would need to play the game to find out. Plus, well... It was the main thing I wanted to point out, as RPGs are heavily story-based.

I haven't played Mario RPG games much, but this is definitely my favorite one.

I liked the uniqueness of this review because you explained the story in depth, which made me want to play this game again just to see that story in action and be actively involved in it by playing the game. Maybe I shouldn't have read the spoilers, but oh well.

Next time I suggest discussing more about the challenge of the game and giving examples of why the music fit in so nicely. Keep making reviews like this!

Great review, Auto, you certainly have a bit of experience writing reviews.

Your detail is very good, perhaps a little too fleshed out in places. I like how your writing style is consistent and very readable.

I love the more optimistic intro about the game, and creates an essay feeling for the reader themselves, wanting to read more.

I felt that the story / plot was way too big for a review, after all, if they know the plot already, why bother playing the game? Consistently keeping each category to an adequate amount of length is key to writing also.

Balance your ARGUEMENT. Try to remain focused on the task, this is a review, not a description.

Great job!